The Tumbleweed Pet Poo Converter
The Tumbleweed Pet Poo Converter is a worm farm. Instead of feeding the
worms vegetable scraps, they are fed dog droppings. The worms convert
the dog droppings into worm castings (worm poo) and a liquid
fertilizer, both of which can safely be used on the garden.
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No maintenance costs
No chemicals
Safe to operate
Produces valuable by-products
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How does it work?
The Tumbleweed Pet Poo Converter consists of two sturdy nesting boxes
with a lid, which form a neat, compact portable unit. The worms eat and
breed in the top box. This has a perforated base to allow any liquid
waste to drain through to the bottom (collector) box. The "worm poo" or
worm castings remain in the top box and can be harvested as desired.
The bottom or catcher box collects the valuable liquid waste which can
be diluted and used as a fertilizer on your garden.
There is no difficulty in getting the worms to eat dog droppings.
Commercial worm farmers rear their worms on manure. However it is not
possible to mix diets. They must be fed exclusively on pet poo.
If you
want to recycle vegetable scraps you must set up a separate farm. (
see the Tumbleweed Worm Farm Vermicompost Bin)
Operating a Pet Poo Converter
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2000 worms in 10 litres of bedding mix are recommended to start the Pet Poo Converter.
Place worms in the top box.
Site the Pet Poo Converter in a shady part of the garden near where the dog does his business.
Using a "pooper scooper" pop the dog droppings into the
top of the Pet Poo Converter and close the lid. The worms and nature
will do the rest!
The Pet Poo Converter will handle, on average, the droppings of two medium size dogs.
Depending upon the size of the dog it will take anything from 3 months to 2 years to fill the top box with worm castings
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Compost Worms
Your Tumbleweed Worm Farm requires about 2,000 worms to kick it off.
The worms must be COMPOST WORMS as these worms have big appetities and
reproduce quickly. This is vital to make your worm farm work
efficiently.
If you start off with less than this, your farm will take longer to
reach maximum capacity. You can always start with more worms and this
will help get your farm to full capacity much quicker. However cost is
usually a factor in purchasing more than 2,000.
Purchasing your Worms
Always purchase your worms from a reliable supplier. They should come
with approximately 10 litres of castings which form their bedding mix.
This ensures that they have adequate food and comfortable living
conditions. Look in the Yellow Pages under "Worm Farms" for suppliers.
NEVER buy worms that are sold in small plastic take-away food
containers as the worms have little food, are stressed and are very
likely to die. Happy worms make productive worm farms!
How much is too much?
The number of worms in a fully operational worm farm will vary. As the
amount of food is increased the worm population will increase to cope
with the quantity. If the food is reduced, such as when you go away on
holiday, then the population will decrease accordingly.
The worms population will never keep increasing ad infinitum. They are
surface eaters and each surface area has a maximum number of worms that
can live in that space. Ultimately the surface area of the box will
determine the maximum population of worms in your worm farm.
Worms
Your compost worms will not survive if you throw them onto the garden,
unless you have a very thick layer of mulch or you put them in the
compost heap. The average garden does not provide enough protection
from the heat or enough food for the worms.
